Highest-rated IPAs in South Carolina

Bitter is better for IPA lovers. This hop-forward brew is the most popular craft beer style in the United States, accounting for nearly half of all beer sales in off-premise retail establishments in 2024, according to Circana data.

India pale ales originated in England in the 1800s, with the phrase first appearing in print in 1835. Brewer George Hodgson typically gets the credit for its development. His competitors started calling his hoppier brew India pale ale because of his contract with the British East India Company.

American brewers first began making English IPAs in the late 1800s, but Americans preferred lagers. It wasn't until 1975, when Anchor Brewing Company launched a dry-hopped pale ale, that craft brewers started to latch onto the style. In 1991, Oregon brewer Teri Fahrendorf made an IPA with all-American ingredients, creating the first American IPA.

Like other ales, IPAs contain top-fermenting yeast, which gives them a robust flavor and aroma. IPAs are loaded with hops, responsible for the beer's characteristic bitterness and its notes of citrus, floral, or pine. These beers are known for their higher alcohol content, ranging from 5.5% to 7.5%, although session IPAs are lower in ABV, and double or triple IPAs are higher.

Brewers like IPAs because they allow for bold creativity. West Coast IPAs are known for their high hop levels, with brewers pushing the bounds of bitterness. While true IPA aficionados love that element, many are now leaning toward the more approachable New England-style IPA, which is hazier in appearance and maximizes the fruitier characteristics of hops without the extreme and potentially off-putting bitter taste.

Whatever your IPA preference, there are endless options to choose from. Stacker compiled a list of the best IPAs from South Carolina, using data from BeerAdvocate, and sorted them according to their weighted ranking. Beers without images were excluded. Only IPAs that made BeerAdvocate's top 100 beer list by state were included.

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BeerAdvocate

1 / 23

#23. Paradise

- Rating: 3.92 (29 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 4.7%
- Brewery: Holy City Brewing
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

2 / 23

#22. Trifecta IPA

- Rating: 3.91 (136 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 6.9%
- Brewery: Thomas Creek Brewery
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

3 / 23

#21. Overly Friendly IPA

- Rating: 3.91 (180 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.6%
- Brewery: Holy City Brewing
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

4 / 23

#20. Lefty Loosey

- Rating: 3.93 (49 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Revelry Brewing Co
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

5 / 23

#19. Double Indemnity Double IPA

- Rating: 3.97 (27 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 8.6%
- Brewery: Legal Remedy Brewing
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

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BeerAdvocate

6 / 23

#18. Plasma Gun

- Rating: 3.99 (36 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 8.0%
- Brewery: Edmund's Oast Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

7 / 23

#17. Breath Of Nebula

- Rating: 4.02 (22 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 6.7%
- Brewery: Edmund's Oast Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

8 / 23

#16. HopArt IPA

- Rating: 3.96 (722 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.7%
- Brewery: COAST Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

9 / 23

#15. Double Dry Hopped Covercraft

- Rating: 4.23 (14 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Charles Towne Fermentory
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

10 / 23

#14. Pineapple Shake

- Rating: 4.04 (27 ratings)
- Type: Milkshake IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

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BeerAdvocate

11 / 23

#13. Covercraft

- Rating: 4.07 (24 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Charles Towne Fermentory
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

12 / 23

#12. Dirty Myrtle

- Rating: 4.10 (34 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 8.9%
- Brewery: New South Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

13 / 23

#11. Fountain Drink

- Rating: 4.14 (24 ratings)
- Type: Milkshake IPA
- ABV: 5.8%
- Brewery: Edmund's Oast Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

14 / 23

#10. Bound By Time

- Rating: 4.05 (163 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Edmund's Oast Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

15 / 23

#9. India Pale Ale

- Rating: 4.04 (1,575 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 6.8%
- Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

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BeerAdvocate

16 / 23

#8. Yeast Wrangler

- Rating: 4.14 (70 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 10.0%
- Brewery: Holy City Brewing
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

17 / 23

#7. Three Claw

- Rating: 4.14 (111 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 8.0%
- Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

18 / 23

#6. Rinse / Repeat - Galaxy

- Rating: 4.22 (55 ratings)
- Type: American IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

19 / 23

#5. Two Claw

- Rating: 4.17 (272 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 7.0%
- Brewery: Westbrook Brewing Co.
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

20 / 23

#4. Viridi Rex

- Rating: 4.28 (53 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 9.5%
- Brewery: Edmund's Oast Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

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BeerAdvocate

21 / 23

#3. Sungazer - Double Dry-Hopped

- Rating: 4.41 (26 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.8%
- Brewery: Charles Towne Fermentory
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

22 / 23

#2. Sungazer

- Rating: 4.29 (117 ratings)
- Type: New England IPA
- ABV: 6.8%
- Brewery: Charles Towne Fermentory
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate

23 / 23

#1. Boy King

- Rating: 4.28 (551 ratings)
- Type: Imperial IPA
- ABV: 9.7%
- Brewery: COAST Brewing Company
- Read more on BeerAdvocate

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 51 states.